Club Rides

Would you like to come and ride with us? That’s fantastic, but…

PLEASE DO NOT JUST SHOW UP FOR OUR CLUB RIDE. Please read this first:

We’re ALWAYS looking for new members who fit in well with our club. What do we mean by “fit in”? Mainly we’re looking for men and women who love riding bikes, who want to improve their bike skills and fitness, who are racing or might be interested in doing some racing one day, and who enjoy the social aspect of riding in a group regularly.

Coming out with us for one of our weekend rides is a good way to start. Atomic Racing Club has a formal club ride every weekend on Saturday morning that runs year round, rain or shine.

We require prospective members to join us for at least 2 or 3 club rides to ensure we are a good fit for you, before joining the club. If you have decent and improving fitness, can handle your bike in a group and leave the ride without killing yourself or anyone in the club, we’ll usually be happy to have you.

Here’s what you need to do BEFORE coming out with us:

1. In order to ride with us, you MUST have read, understood and signed our club waiver. Please complete this form in advance and bring it with you to your first club ride.

2. In order to ride with us, or any club in B.C., you need to have a Cycling BC license EXCEPT for the first ride. All cyclists are allowed one “demo” ride where they do not need to hold a license. As long as you’ve signed our waiver, and we have it BEFORE the ride, you’re good to go. If you want to come again though, you’ll need a license.

We are affiliated with, and insured through, Cycling BC. In order to be compliant with our insurance, all riders must have a Cycling BC license. Any license will do, many new riders take out a Citizen’s license at a minium which can be upgraded to a full UCI race license later if need be. Check out the Cycling BC website for more information.

3. And Contact us in advance! send email to info@atomicracing.com and let us know you want to come out for the ride. We will then make sure you have your license. have signed the waiver, and give you additional details about upcoming rides.

If you’re not sure what’s going on before or during the ride, ASK.

What are our club rides like?

Our club rides vary a lot in terms of how many members turn out, the route, the intensity and general mood. Sometimes there might be only 3-4 people, sometimes 15.

All rides usually start out slow, and we ride together in a group. The start of the ride is a good time for you, as a new rider with us, to make sure your bike is working well, you have the right clothing on, your water bottles are securely in their cages, etc.

In the summer we tend to go over to the north shore, riding up to Horseshoe Bay, climbing Cypress or Seymour, or going to Deep Cove. The summer rides tend to be faster. Most of the members are in good form in the summer, and they like to work hard on club rides.

Winter rides almost always head to Richmond, where we’ll do head out to Iona and then some kind of loop of Richmond. Winter rides are a little slower, but can be long and tough with the wind and rain.

All rides – summer or winter – range from 2.5 – 4 hours. It’s your responsibility to make sure you have enough food (power bars, gels, bananas, nuts – whatever your favourite bike food is), and fluids. We normally stop a few times for washroom breaks, and on rare occasions to resupply with food and drink.

Once you join a ride if you run into any problems – too fast, too slow, you have a flat tire, you feel ill, you need to stop – TELL SOMEONE. Don’t just stop, please make sure someone else on the ride knows you’ve stopped.

Please remember that you are a guest of the club and must practice good riding etiquette. What does “good” etiquette mean? If you don’t know, read the section at the bottom of this page. If you still don’t know, please ask BEFORE you ride with us.

Remember – PLEASE DO NOT JUST SHOW UP FOR OUR CLUB RIDE. We’ll be happy to have you on the ride – but make sure we know you’re coming in advance.

Weekend Club Ride

• Location – Cornerstone coffee shop at 4th and Stephens (one block east of MacDonald).
• Time – Saturday morning at 8:00 am (April to end of September) and at 9:00 am (from October 1 to end of March). We try to leave the coffee shop on time. If you are a non-member who is attending our club ride for the first time, please come earlier so that you can get a chance to meet other riders and drop off your waiver. Grabbing a coffee before the ride is a great idea too, and supports Cornerstone (great people!)
• Intensity – This is also dependent upon the time of year. For the “off-season” months, the rides are typically low intensity intended to build an endurance base. As we approach the race season, the intensity will start to ramp up, often through the introduction of structured interval sessions mixed into the ride. Regardless of the time of year we ensure the first 60 to 90 minutes are at a reasonable pace. Rides occasionally split after that point depending on the training objectives of the members in attendance. Regardless of the intensity, if you are just trying out the club we will make sure you aren’t dropped from the ride.

Wednesday (or Thursday) night Hill Repeats

• running roughly from April to November, hill repeats are much shorter, structured rides designed to boost cardio and top-end climbing. Weekday rides all leave from Speed Theory at 6:00 P.M. If the weather looks iffy and you’re unsure whether the ride is going to happen, give SpeedTheory a call at 604-714-0171 and they’ll let you know.

Riding etiquette

We expect that all riders adhere to the following rules to ensure their own safety as well as of the group at large.

• When riding at the head of the group keep a sharp eye “up road” for road hazards and obstacles – plan ahead – avoiding them and giving your team mates a good line to follow and sufficient time to react.
• If possible use hand signals and/or voice signals to point out obstacles and hazards to riders following behind. If you are new to group riding wait a few rides before you worry about this one – instead keep your hands on your handlebars and concentrate on not running into anything or anyone.
• Depending upon the circumstances, riders will either be riding in a single or double pace-line. Riding three or four abreast is neither necessary nor safe
• Keep the speed consistent with the peloton when riding in a paceline. Upon pulling off, do a shoulder check to ensure that it is safe and don’t swing too far out into the road. When you pull through, do so at the same speed as the riders that have pulled through before you.
• Fenders and mud-flaps are mandatory for all club rides from the fall until the spring (typically mid-October to end of February). Fenders are encouraged in the shoulder season if the weather is poor. Mud-flaps are not for your benefit they are for the benefit of the riders following you. Any mud-flap will do, simply ensure it hangs down to within 3 or 4 inches of the road (no skimping or the people riding behind you will be picking sand out of their teeth and you will be asked to ride at the back for the remainder of the ride). Don’t know where to buy fenders and/or can’t be bothered spending 2 hours trying to install them yourself? Our friends at SpeedTheory will be happy to help you out. If you are a member of Atomic, you’ll also be eligible for a discount.
• Riders must abide by the rules of the road. Erratic/dangerous behaviour will not be tolerated, nor is disrespectful behaviour to motorists/pedestrians
• Bring a spare tube, pump and sufficient food and drink to stay fuelled for the ride.
• If you get a flat during the ride, your team mates will wait with you while you repair the flat and get back on the road.